Stocks rose on Wednesday following the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve’s most-recent policy meeting. In the meeting, all but one member agreed that it would be “appropriate” to maintain the current near-zero interest rate atmosphere through at least 2015.
The minutes, paired with data showing that wholesale businesses increased stockpiles for the eighth straight month in February, helped push the major indices higher. The move appeared to be the inverse of the major losses on Friday and Monday, with the Nasdaq gaining over a half percent more on the day than the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500.
Among the biggest gainers was the biotech industry, with the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB) gaining 4.1 percent and the SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI) climbing 3.84 percent.
Results for April 9, 2014
? Standard & Poor’s 500: +1.09 percent to 1,872.18 points
? Dow Jones Industrial Average: +1.11 percent to 16,437.18 points
? NASDAQ Exchange: +1.72 percent to 4,183.90 points
Our Top Stories
? Equities.com Director of Research Francis Gaskins profiled the two companies debuting on the markets today, China’s largest provider of preventive health care services iKang Healthcare Group ($KANG) and Irving, TX-based hotel chain La Quinta Inns & Suites ($LQ).
? Jeff Kagan looks at how internet-based television is quickly becoming a crowded space.
? George Brooks sees uncertainty in the markets following Friday and Monday’s sell-off, but that could be an opportunity, as well.
? Senior editor Jacob Harper asks what Twitter (TWTR) really has to gain by making their product resemble Facebook (FB) more closely.
? Thom Calandra takes a long look at the state of the coal industry.
? Casey Research looks at the potential for Puerto Rico to act as a tax haven.
? The Gold Report talks with Ted Dixon of INK Research about gold stocks.
? The Life Sciences Report sits down with Maxim Analyst Jason Kolbert on the ups and downs of investing in biotech.
? Tim Melvin examines how the smartest way to invest may be to simply avoid risk.
? Senior Editor Jacob Harper looks at “The Principle” and how geocentrism has been thrust into the public spotlight by a single wealthy individual.
Stocks
? Shares in volatile biotech small cap Cytokinetics (CYTK) were on the rise in what looked like a small short squeeze.
? Small-Cap Star Gray Television (GTN) gained today on an upgrade from analysts at Wells Fargo.
? Shares in Facebook were among the biggest gainers today, up 7.25 percent on heavy volume.
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